Eva's journal

I have'nt done much with the dollhouse for over a year, but today I decided to knit sweaters and caps for the kids; this is the first one.

It is knitted in the round up to where the sleeves should be, then front and back are knitted separately. There’s no neck scoop in the back, but one in the front. The body was sewn together at the shoudlers and then I picked up stitches for the sleeves.

I am not at all up past midnight looking at dolls on eBay.

Sine I last updated I have finished most of the embroidery on Måns' matching, split wool tunic. What remains now is the sleeves and I count on finishing them next week.

I have also started on a dress for my friend Caroline's traditional "Blåkulla-party" on Thursday next week. According to Swedish folklore witches flies to a hill/mointain called Blåkulla on Maundy Thursday or Holy Saturday, depnedign on which part of the country you come from. Here in the southwest it's really Holy Saturday, but Thursday fits better for a party. It's not a pagan party, more a reaction to wiccans and witches always getting questions about what we/they do at Easter, because of the abovementioned folk tradition. So we explain that it's a Christian holiday nad has nothing to do with us. But, since no pagan traditions celebrate Easter and people are still (usually) free from work on Good Friday it is an excellent time to hold a mixed pagan/occultist/juste generally interested party with the folk traditions as inspiration.

It's from red cotton muslin that I bought cheaply when I was in London last tiem and I have used a cut out template to decorate it with stags, owls, acorns, pine cones and oak leaves in gold and silver textile paint. Then I made flowers and feathers and stars and spirlas with glittery paint. It is rather boring work, but listened to Harry Potter on audio book while doing it. Fixing the paint is of course even more boring, since every motif has to be ironed for five minutes, but I usually bring a book and sit down on the bed next to the ironing board when I do thigns like that. I have already done the bodice and sleeve parts,so "only" the skirt pieces remain.

I probably ought to work, because I have deadlines on one article and got the peer review back on another one, but I knwo that I won't make it through next week of work if I don't rest during the weekend. Especially since we celebrate the Vernal Equinox tomorrow, which is fun, but takes physical energy.

The weather is nice and sunny, so I think I'm going to sit down on the balcony and have some tea and start on that embroidery.

I have written one blog post about 13th century women's headwear since last time, it's here.

I have also fixed four rather ugly cheap porcelain dolls that I bought on flea markets when Valeria and Vendela were little. They're much better now, but need new clothes. Some photos from this project, though no finished ones:

I've been busy with an article, teaching, and with cutting a silk brocade gown for Måns, so it took a few days, but now Lilly also has a jacket. Of the same type and from the same fabric as I used to make for Valeria and Vendela when they were little. This one is a little longer than their's were though, because it's hard to find very short separating zippers.



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Of course I found a tutorial on how to make socks for dolls from odd ankle socks. So now Lily has two pairs of socks. Maja also found a pair of old doll's shoes that were just a little bit too big:



Unfortunately Lily dropped the front of her left eye just after that and when it was glued to the eyeball the eyelashes were lost and the eye won't close properly now either. Any tips Teddy?

Ever since I first visited clothsprogs back in 2005 I've been awfully tempted to start with dolls myself. I think I have shown great restraint in this.

But now Maja found American Girl dolls on Pinterest and we are happily getting entusiastic about dolls together. I did manage to turn her love over to slightly cheaper, and in my eyes prettier dolls. This is Emily, who she wants for her birthday. If she can wait until May. Otherwise she'll use her saved birthday and christmas money (for several years) to buy her herself.

I'm ratehr fond of the Kidz'n'cats dolls myself, and I consider buying this little sweatheart. Except that I don't have the money for dolls right now, since I am making new garb for the baroness stuff, and I am also going to Florence in April, and I haven't paid back that trip in full yet to our savings account.

Anyway, since all my hobbies tend to come in flares, and I get wildly enthusiastic about them, I started yesterday with cleaning a very 60s doll that Maja's (paternal) grandmother bought for her at a charity shop. I've always like dher, but Maja didn't like the very typical for the period lipstick and hair. I softened the hair with conditioner, and it's better, though the mullet like hair-do isn't our cup of tea. I also removed the lipstick. And this morning, before Maja went to school I gave her freckles and a little more eyebrows, as well as lover eyelashes. I will probably remove those though.

Then I gave her pink lips (and nostrils).

So, this Lily. She's 42 cm tall and badly needs new eyelashes, but I guess that something that one can fix?



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